X7: War of the Mutants
by CPO Backstreet
Summary: Part 4 of my post-X3 storyline. The X-Men are reaching a new level of understanding with both their government and each other. But this could change when some old enemies make a reappearance and the mutants tracking them could turn out to be as big a threat.
1. Chapter 1

**This carries on from the original trilogy and from my previous stories X-Men IV: The Dark Before the Dawn, X5: Clash of Steel and X6: Gene Pool (reading of which is recommended if you haven't already). Both prequels are ignored.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 1**

Storm looked through the windscreen of the X-Jet as the craft slowly came into land on the lawn. The building in front of them stood gleaming white. The fact she was looking at it was a perfect symbol of how far the X-Men had come from the outlaws they were once regarded as. "I never thought I'd see it this close."

Wolverine shot a glance in the direction she was staring at, his attitude as nonchalant as always. "Yeah, it's real impressive,"he remarked drily.

"I think what's perhaps more impressive,"Professor X replied,"is that we were invited here."

Wolverine shrugged. "Least they could do, given how many times we saved this country."

Storm shot a look at him. "You're not going to be like this in polite company, are you?"

Wolverine reached over and took her hand, smiling one of his rare, genuine smiles. "For you, I will be on my best behaviour." He kissed her on the cheek.

"Well, I suppose we'd better announce our presence,"Professor X noted. He pressed the control to lower the lamp and the three of them descended onto the White House lawn.

A group of soldiers had surrounded the jet, even though they were making sure they pointed their weapons in every direction except at the X-Men. Wolverine leaned close to the professor. "Can I?"

Professor X shot him a long-suffering look. "If you must."

Wolverine turned to the soldiers. "Take us to your leader."

* * *

The soldiers led the three of them down a long succession of corridors to the Oval Office. When they entered, the President was sat behind the desk. Standing next to the desk was the former X-Man Beast. The President gestured to the chairs in front of him. "I'm glad you could join us. Please, take a seat. Unless, Professor, you'd prefer to stand?"

Professor X smiled. "Well, this robotic body doesn't require rest. However, after so many years in a wheelchair, I'm still not quite accustomed to viewing things from this height. So, I think I'll accept the chair."

The four of them, Beast included, took the seats offered. The President gestured to the other man. "I believe you are all well-acquainted with Henry McCoy, the leader of our mutant strike team?"

Wolverine glanced at their old colleague. "You didn't stick with 'X-Factor'?"

"The name is still in use,"Beast answered. "But it was felt a more informative description was also required.

"Mr. President, we appreciate being invited here,"Professor X noted. "Perhaps more than you can imagine. But I would like to know why, exactly."

"What can we do to help you?"Storm asked.

The President leaned back in his chair, considering his words carefully. "You can talk to me."

There was a confused silence. "Come again?"Wolverine asked.

"In the past, there have been those in my administration who have viewed the X-Men as renegades, as vigilantes. As a menace to society, the same as the Brotherhood or the Marauders or any other mutant terrorist group. I do not share that view. But if we are to work together, then we need to work together. I can't have you continuing to carry out raids without official backing."

Professor X steepled his fingers in concern. "Mr. President, the X-Men have always valued our independence. We believe we work best without government interference."

"We can't ask your permission every time we need to take action,"Storm added.

The President considered their words. "My main priority is that we are kept fully informed of all relevant information. I am appointing Henry McCoy, who you trust, as liaison, in the hope that will remove some of the suspicion."

"Things will go better if we work together,"Beast agreed.

Professor X considered the comments. "Then it seems we must be prepared to welcome this brave new world."

* * *

Bobby Drake, better known as the X-Man Iceman, was sure there were times he had been more terrified. But he couldn't quite remember any at that moment. He was aware that the ranks of senior X-Men had thinned somewhat during his time with the team, which had led to him being made one of the group's instructors. But when Professor X had suddenly left, taking Wolverine and Storm with him, no-one had been more surprised than Bobby when they told him he was being left in charge of the mansion. Normally, Rogue would have been considered the best candidate, but her current circumstances made that somewhat impractical. Which was how he came to be standing outside the Danger Room, with a line of X-Men waiting for him to tell them what to do: Colossus, Kitty Pryde, Siryn and Angel, as Warren had taken to calling himself again since Sinister's virus had reversed the changes Apocalypse had made to him.

"Okay,"Bobby announced in what he hoped was an authoritative tone. "Today's exercise is to focus on teamwork. Watch each other's back, make sure your partner's safe. You may have to do this in real life some day. So, Peter with Therese and Kitty with Warren, okay?"

They looked at him. "Bit obvious?"Siryn suggested.

"Well…it's probably what you'd do if we were doing this for real."

"So, guess I'm paired with you then,"remarked a female voice from behind him.

Bobby turned round to find Rogue standing there, having changed into her X-Men uniform. He walked over to her, speaking quietly. "Marie, you can't be here."

"Why?" Rogue tilted her head, looking at him defiantly, and made no attempt to stop the others hearing. "Because I'm not a mutant?"

"Because you're pregnant and about ready to drop?"Kitty suggested helpfully.

"She can't even do her jacket up,"Siryn remarked caustically.

"You're being indelicate,"Colossus scolded her gently.

"Look, Rogue, you can be back on the team when you're…"Bobby searched for the word.

"No longer pregnant,"Warren suggested.

"Yeah,"Bobby confirmed.

Rogue rolled her eyes. "You get that this is an industrial tribunal in the making, right?" She turned and stalked off back down the corridor.

Bobby turned back to the others, who seemed to be trying to stifle laughs. "Okay, Danger Room, now." But the little encounter with Rogue had made him feel even more of a fraud than ever. If his girlfriend didn't respect him, why would anyone else?


	2. Chapter 2

**Got my first follow so thank you to that person! Hope everyone enjoys this.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 2**

Jubilee felt a kind of nervous anticipation as she stood in the street, pretending to look in a shop window. She stole a glance towards Gambit, who was leaning against a wall, flicking through one of the packs of playing cards that he always seemed to carry around, looking quite at ease with himself.

She saw a man emerging from an office building and knew that this was their quarry. Arthur Wilde. Gambit had told her that Wilde had recently convinced the occupants of a tenement building that he owned to move out so that improvements could be made to their rooms. Those "improvements" turned out to be demolishing the entire building and selling the land off to a developer, leaving its former residents sleeping on the floors of friends or relatives.

As they'd rehearsed, Jubilee waited until Wilde was in the right position and then turned, clattering into him and causing his briefcase to be knocked from his grasp. The lock burst open on impact with the ground, scattering its contents.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!"she exclaimed in her best innocent voice. "Let me help you."

Wilde simply gave her a glare as he began gathering up the papers. Gambit came and knelt with them, picking up papers with one hand while, unnoticed by anyone but her, his other hand slipped into Wilde's pocket and removed a small object. Concealing it in his own coat, he handed Wilde the pile of papers he'd gathered with a reassuring smile. Wilde snatched the papers from him, stuffed them back in his briefcase, and stormed off down the street.

Jubilee resumed her examination of the shop window for a while until she considered it safe to head for the alley where Gambit was waiting. He greeted her with a lingering kiss. "Excellent, mon cherie."

"What have you got?"she asked.

Gambit thumbed through Wilde's wallet. "A hundred dollars in bills and all his credit cards and passwords. I think his former tenants will shortly find their bank balances unexpectedly increased."

"Very charitable, LeBeau,"a deep voice sneered. "Assuming you live long enough to do anything with it."

Jubilee turned at the voice and saw a thickset, heavily-built man with a beard and a lithe green-haired woman standing at the entrance to the alley, blocking their exit.

"Greycrow,"Gambit murmured.

It was then that Jubilee realised who the pair were. Siryn had told her of the Marauders that the other X-Men had fought while she and Gambit confronted Mr. Sinister and of the two that survived: Scalphunter and Vertigo.

"Let Jubilee go,"Gambit instructed. "She's not involved in this."

"She's an X-Man,"Scalphunter retorted. "That makes her involved." He pulled a weapon from behind his back, using his mutant powers to shift it so it transformed into a flamethrower. Gambit and Jubilee dived aside as he opened fire.

Jubilee saw Vertigo training her powers on her and felt waves of nausea course through her body. She generated fireworks and managed to hurl them. They exploded in front of Vertigo's face, temporarily blinding her and causing her to grab hold of her face with a yell of pain.

Gambit, meanwhile, had charged up a playing card and hurled it at Scalphunter. It attached itself to his weapon and then exploded, wrecking it. Scalphunter grabbed Vertigo by the arm. "Stop them,"he snapped. Gambit and Jubilee felt the waves of nausea enveloping them, stopping them, as Scalphunter dragged the still blinded Vertigo from the scene.

* * *

Rogue heard the laughter coming from the corridor as Kitty, Colossus, Warren and Siryn came up from the basement. "I can't believe you managed to nail that last one,"Kitty remarked.

"Hey, just call it precision screaming,"Siryn replied.

"I'm glad you've learned to be that precise,"Colossus commented.

"Just call it a team effort,"Warren suggested.

The four of them walked on past the sitting room, apparently not knowing she was there. Bobby paused by the doorway and looked at her. She looked away and he headed for the office.

"Are you feeling left out?"

Rogue looked round at the voice and saw Leech had come over. "What's it to do with you?"she asked curtly.

"I know how you feel. They leave you out because you're pregnant, they leave me out because I'm the youngest. They forget we're X-Men too. They'll remember eventually."

Rogue managed a grateful smile, then she heard the commotion in the hallway. She hurried out, Leech just behind her, to find a group of students staring at Jubilee and Gambit, who had just arrived back. Their clothes were torn and looked burnt in places and they had a dishevelled appearance. As if they'd been in a fight.

"Get to class,"Rogue snapped at the students before raising her voice. "Bobby! I think you're needed out here."


	3. Chapter 3

**Well, got my first reviews so thank you to that loyal supporter. Hope everyone enjoys this chapter.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 3**

Professor X had resumed his place behind the desk rather sooner than he liked once he, Storm and Wolverine returned to the mansion. They had found Gambit and Jubilee in the middle of relating their story to Bobby, Rogue, Kitty, Warren, Colossus and Siryn when they arrived. Their appearance had meant the pair had had to begin again, relating the story of their encounter with the two remaining Marauders. "This could simply be an isolated incident,"the professor mused. "A chance encounter?"

"In an alleyway?"Jubilee asked.

"It does seem unlikely,"Storm agreed.

"Can you think of any reason why they'd go after you?"Wolverine wondered.

Gambit hesitated. "You know I was the one who assembled the Marauders for Sinister. John Greycrow, or Scalphunter as he calls himself these days, was… a special case. He was a friend, someone I'd met on my wanderings. I knew he'd been in the army and needed money so I recommended him. I didn't realise he'd enjoy killing so much. I realised then that I never really knew him."

"What do we do now?"Bobby asked.

"I think all we can do is be on our guard,"Xavier answered.

Bobby nodded to the other young X-Men. "Guess we'd better get back to work then." He suddenly seemed to realise what he was doing and turned back to the professor. "Um, I mean…if there's nothing else you want doing."

"No, that's fine,"Xavier confirmed.

Everyone exited, aside from the professor, Wolverine and Storm. "You going to tell Big Brother about this?"Wolverine asked.

"I feel I'm obliged to,"Professor X answered.

"We need to keep the government on our side,"Storm agreed.

Wolverine snorted. "Yeah. Give them enough rope to hang us with."

* * *

Siryn had followed Jubilee into the front room. She sat down next to her. "What did it feel like? Being attacked like that?"

Jubilee thought for a moment. "Scary, I guess. Once it was over, it was kind of exciting."

"I think I can do without that kind of excitement."

Jubilee looked at her in surprise. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, last time we ran into the Marauders I ended up with a load of spikes in my chest. Gave a whole new meaning to punctured lung. I can't say I'm looking forward to going through that again." Siryn saw the concerned look Jubilee was giving her and struggled to explain. "I mean, I'm an X-Man. I still believe in all the things they believe in. It's just the whole life or death thing is starting to get a bit much for me. How long is it going to be before I get seriously hurt? Or Peter does? I mean, have you seen how many graves of fallen X-Men we've got in the garden? Scott, Jean, Kurt, that Forge guy…"

"Are you saying you want to leave?"Jubilee asked.

"I'm saying…I'm not sure how long we can go on with this."

* * *

Vertigo glared across the empty house where they'd taken refuge towards where Scalphunter was sitting. "So what exactly did we achieve with all that?"

"We nearly got LeBeau."

"Yeah. Nearly. What's the point of that? What we nearly got was caught."

Scalphunter stood up so he towered over her. "What, are you scared of the police? Or maybe the X-Men?"

"I just don't think we should be taking risks for no reason."

"Relax. No-one will find us here."

It was at that point that the wall next to them exploded.

Three large, heavily-built figures were standing in the gap that had suddenly appeared in the brickwork. One of them was wearing silver armour, another red armour with a matching helmet and the last one was wearing a black vest and trousers as if he was dressed for a wrestling match.

A short young man with bleached blonde hair pushed his way past the group and addressed the pair. "So, you're the Marauders, huh? Well, there's two of you so I guess you still qualify for the plural. I'm Pyro. This is Juggernaut, Blob and Avalanche. We're the Brotherhood."

"Are we meant to be impressed?"Scalphunter asked.

"You should be." A ball of fire suddenly appeared in the palm of Pyro's hand. He balanced it there before tossing it lightly up into the air and catching it again. "We've been lying low for a bit. Gathering our forces. See, there are certain people who seem to have forgotten to be afraid of mutants. Think they're all cute and cuddly. Time we show them they're wrong. They need to fear us. Like every animal fears it's superiors."

"You want us to join?"Vertigo asked.

"I think it'll be worth your while."

"Do we get to kill someone?"Scalphunter asked.

Pyro smiled. "I'd say it's inevitable."

"We're in."


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you again for the reviews and for anyone who's added this to their alert list. I try not to go longer than a week without updating but hey, if I did update more it would just mean the story would be over sooner...**

* * *

**CHAPTER 4**

Pyro's new Brotherhood were grouped around a long table: Juggernaut, Blob, Avalanche, Scalphunter, Vertigo and Abraham Kieros, who had once been Apocalypse's Horseman of War.

"What we've got to do now,"Pyro told them,"is think big. I was taught by Magneto, I know the way these things work. You need a big statement if you're going to attract people's attention."

"So what are you planning to do?"Blob asked. "Set off a load of nuclear missiles?"

Pyro gave him a superior smile. "Not big enough."

"And not fun enough,"Juggernaut added. "When do I get to hit someone?"

Kieros rolled his eyes. "This is your superior team?"

"They're mutants,"Pyro snapped. "If they're mutants, they're superior. It's just some mutants have a hard time understanding that."

"That's why some mutants are more superior than others,"Scalphunter commented.

Pyro smiled at him. "Now we're talking the same language."

"Perhaps you could offer a translation for those of us hard of understanding?"a new voice asked.

Everyone turned towards the doorway. A large black man, his hair tied back in dreadlocks, wearing a red shirt and combat trousers, was standing there. Pyro sneered at him. "And who might you be?"

"Bishop." The newcomer walked to the other end of the table, staring across it at Pyro, with the other members of the Brotherhood standing down the sides of the table. "I think you need a few lessons in correct ideology."

"And what exactly is your ideology?"

"That a mutant criminal is still a criminal."

Pyro laughed. "I like this guy. He's very funny. Avalanche, show him exactly what criminals we are."

Avalanche used his mutant powers to desintegrate inanimate objects to turn the surface of the floor into a tidal wave of moving matter, knocking Bishop off his feet. He came up into a crouch. "Thank you very much,"he noted and then sent a blast of energy at Avalanche, knocking him back into a wall.

Vertigo aimed her powers at him as well, affecting his balance. Bishop lowered his head, concentrated, and then looked up, sending a blast in her direction. "Anything you send at me, I can just absorb and reflect back at you,"he explained. "And note, I'm only using a fraction of what I could."

War clapped his hands together and explosions rippled across the floor around Bishop. Pyro generated a ball of flame and hurled it at their opponent, who dived out of the way. "Now isn't that interesting,"Pyro remarked. "Energy-based attacks you can absorb but anything cruder you can't handle. Now who's the crudest here?" He smiled maliciously. "Finish it, boys."

Blob and Juggernaut went running at Bishop, hitting him from either side with bone-crushing force. Bishop crumpled to the ground.

"Everyone having fun now?"Pyro asked. There were murmurs of assent from the Brotherhood. He threw a jacket over his shoulder. "I think it's time we found a better class of place to hang out."

* * *

Bobby sat down next to Rogue on the couch. "Are we okay?"

Rogue shot him a sideways glance. "I think we have to be."

"I'm sorry about ordering you about. I guess being left in charge got to me a bit."

"It wasn't just that."

Bobby sighed. "I know you might not want to hear this but…I wanted to look after you."

Rogue took his hand and placed it over her extremely swollen stomach. "Well, I guess _we_ need you to look after us." She focused on the feel of his hand in hers. They'd done a lot more than hold hands, of course, as her current condition proved, yet she still remembered a time when even that was an impossible dream.

Bobby was about to say something when Professor X's voice came over the intercom. "All X-Men please report to my office immediately."

Bobby got to his feet but kept hold of Rogue's hand. "Are you coming?"

She smiled and let him help her to her feet.

* * *

Professor X waited until the entire group had assembled in his office: Storm, Wolverine, Iceman, Rogue, Gambit, Colossus, Kitty, Angel, Siryn and Jubilee. "It appears our co-operation with the authorities is starting to bear fruit,"he observed. "_They_ have provided _us_ with some intelligence."

"Anything we need to worry about?"Storm asked.

"Perhaps. There has been report of a battle in Richmond." He paused dramatically. "The combatants were mutants."

"Do we know who?"Gambit asked.

"The Marauders?"Jubilee ventured.

"It's possible,"the professor continued. "None of the combatants were sighted. But there is another possibility. Other powers were indicated by the evidence at the scene. Including the ability to control fire."

There was a moment's silence. "John?"Bobby asked quietly.

"Does that mean the Brotherhood are involved?"Rogue asked.

"Pyro seemed to take over what was left of them after Magneto died,"Kitty agreed.

Angel looked confused. "Are we saying the Marauders were fighting the Brotherhood?"

"And if they are,"Siryn continued,"what do we do?"

"Sell tickets?"Wolverine suggested.

"Containment,"Colossus said simply.

Xavier nodded. "Peter is right. Our priority has to be the preservation of innocent lives. And even not so innocent lives. An all-out war between mutants is the last thing the world needs at the moment."

* * *

Even as Xavier spoke, another figure sat in a dank basement, listening to a radio report. "No firm identification has been made of those involved in the incident but it is known that law enforcement agencies are investigating several known mutant terrorist groups in connection with the incident…"

The figure reached over and turned off the radio. "And they will achieve nothing,"he said quietly. "The strong will always defeat the weak. Unless the strong choose to protect them. By whatever means are necessary."

He got up from his seat, went to a locker and pulled out a large combat gun, strapping it over his shoulder. Cable breathed in the air for a moment, preparing himself, before heading up the stairs.


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

The General Assembly building in Richmond was home to the elected representatives of the state of Virginia. Its upper floor housed the senate, the highest authority in the state. As a result, it was probably one of the most well-protected buildings in the area.

The wall remained intact for precisely half a second before Juggernaut demolished it.

The Brotherhood poured in through the hole in the wall. Security guards attempted to stop them but the strength of Juggernaut, Blob and Avalanche easily knocked them aside. Scalphunter converted his weapon into a sub-machine gun, spraying the area with bullets. War clapped his hands together, causing explosions to rip through the corridor. Vertigo saw a group of guards drawing their weapons and used her powers on them, hitting them with such crippling nausea that they all collapsed.

Pyro strode through the wreckage towards the upper house and pushed open the door.

All eyes in the room turned to face the group of tough-looking mutants advancing on them. The Lieutenant Governor got to his feet. "What is the meaning of this?"

Pyro regarded him with studied insolence. "Well, Mr. Governor, _sir_, I was hoping you would send a message to Washington for me."

"And that is?"

"That you're a relic. A dinosaur. A tiny rung on the evolutionary ladder. And it's about time you realised that, stood down and let your betters take over."

The Lieutenant Governor actually managed to match Pyro's expression of contempt. "And if we don't?"

Pyro smiled. "You die." He generated a flame in his hand then hurled a long stream of fire at the Lieutenant Governor. The man dived for cover, the flame striking the wall behind where he had been standing and setting fire to a tapestry.

"I think you need to stand away from them,"came a voice.

Pyro looked round and saw that Cable had entered the room behind them. He had his weapon trained on the Brotherhood. "And who might you be?"Pyro enquired.

"Cable,"Scalphunter spat.

Cable cocked his head on one side. "Scalphunter. You continue to choose unworthy causes."

"I'm only interested in one cause at the moment." Scalphunter levelled his weapon. "Your death." He fired. Cable leapt to one side and returned fire. Juggernaut ran into him and knocked him flying.

Then Juggernaut too was sent firing by an energy blast as a second figure entered the chamber. Bishop. He fired another blast at Blob, who crumpled to the ground under the force.

"Someone stop him!"Pyro shouted. He hurled a fireball in Bishop's direction. At the same time, Avalanche sent a wave of disintegrating marble flying at Cable, upending him.

"This wasn't the plan,"Juggernaut protested.

Pyro was reluctantly forced to conceed the point. "Let's get out of here. Clear the way."

Juggernaut went charging for the exit, forcing both Cable and Bishop to get out of the way, the other Brotherhood members following him.

Cable and Bishop stood looking at each other. "Explain your presence,"Bishop instructed.

"That information is not relevant,"Cable replied.

"You will explain your presence now…or you will explain it afterwards."

"After what?"

Bishop hit Cable with a low intensity beam that knocked him down. "You don't want to know. I can absorb any energy you direct at me."

Cable drew his spear. "You may be able to absorb energy but does that extend to kinetic energy?" He threw himself at Bishop. The two of them landed on a set of seats, demolishing it.

The Lieutenant Governor looked on aghast. "These guys are crazy. Someone get help, now!"

* * *

Pyro marched angrily down the street, occasionally hurling a fireball to make it clear that people should stay out of his way, the rest of the Brotherhood trailing after him. "Well, that was well thought out," Avalanche complained.

"Yeah,"Blob agreed. "What's up, you think we need practise running away?"

"There were only two of them,"Scalphunter added. "We could have taken them easily."

"But we didn't,"Pyro replied, stopping and turning to face them. "Because we've grown soft. We need to test ourselves."

"Now that sounds like fun,"Juggernaut agreed. "What did you have in mind?"

Pyro gave a malicious smile. "You're going to like this one."

* * *

A siren sounded through the corridor of the X-Mansion. Storm, Wolverine, Rogue, Iceman, Gambit, Kitty and Angel hurried into the office where Professor X was on the phone. He motioned for them to be quiet and Bobby pressed a button to cancel the alarm.

"Yes, we'll get onto it right away,"the professor told the voice on the other end of the line. "Thank you for letting us know." He replaced the receiver and looked at the X-Men. "There's been an attack on the Virginia General Assembly. The Brotherhood."

"Then let's get after them,"Bobby declared.

"I'm afraid it's not as simple as that. Two other mutants intervened and drove the Brotherhood off. They're currently in the middle of the senate room, doing their best to demolish it and each other."

"Who are they?"Angel asked.

"We're not sure as yet. But there is a strong possibility that we know one of them. Witnesses describe a grey-haired man, heavily built, wearing a combat outfit, with a large gun and spear."

"Cable?"Wolverine asked incredulously.

"But he sided with us against Sinister,"Kitty protested. "Isn't he a good guy now?"

"Some people have different ideas as to what a 'good guy' is,"Gambit replied.

"X-Factor have been alerted but we're closer,"Xavier continued. "Our help has been requested in breaking up the fight."

"But shouldn't the Brotherhood be our main priority?"Rogue asked.

"Yes, which is why I'm keeping most of you here. Storm, I want you to take Logan and Gambit and get down there. Put a stop to this. Quickly."

Storm nodded. "Right away, Professor." She gestured to the other two and they left the office at a jog.

"Why is it every time we go on a date it involves violence and a chaperone?"Wolverine asked.

"Just fits our personalities, I guess,"Storm replied.


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you again for the reviews!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 6**

A few of the security guards had considered intervening but it hadn't taken more than a glance at the combatants for them to abandon any such thoughts. Cable and Bishop were tearing into each other like animals, both of them seeming to have long forgotten exactly why they were fighting.

The street outside had been cleared, giving the X-Jet a perfect landing place. Wolverine, Storm and Gambit hurried down the ramp into the building. "Stop this!"Storm shouted at the pair. Both of them ignored her.

"Looks like we're gonna have to do this the hard way,"Wolverine commented.

"Cable has fought the entire X-Men team single-handed in the past,"Gambit reminded him.

Wolverine shrugged. "Maybe he's tired." With a bellow, he flew through the air, kicking Cable away from Bishop.

Cable rolled over and got to his feet. "Logan,"he spat, his voice a mixture of disappointment and disbelief. "Why are you getting in my way?"

"Dunno. Guess I'm getting all respectable in my old age."

"I will tear that interloper limb from limb."

"Not really the image we go in for." Wolverine extended his claws.

Behind him, Bishop was facing Storm and Gambit. "You're the X-Men,"he realised. "I've heard of you, tried to emulate you."

"Should we be flattered?"Gambit wondered.

"If that's what you are doing, then you're doing it the wrong way,"Storm observed.

Bishop looked at her in confusion. "I don't understand. I stopped the Brotherhood."

"Fighting evil mutants is only part of what we do,"Storm told him. "We're protecting innocent lives. You're putting them in danger."

"Then you are not who I thought you are. I must make the difficult decisions that you do not."

"I think that adequately sums up our position." Gambit took out a playing card and charged it, hurling it at Bishop's chest.

The card suddenly lost its charge, the glow fading. Bishop looked at them for a moment, then sent out an energy charge that knocked them both flying.

"He can absorb energy!"Cable called over from where he and Wolverine were struggling.

"Thanks for the tip,"Storm noted as she staggered to her feet. "Swap, Logan?"

"Sounds like a plan." Wolverine broke free of Cable's grip and did a backflip, so he ended up facing Bishop. "The easy way or my way?"

"Seems like you X-Men always do things the easy way,"Bishop retorted.

"That's what I thought." Wolverine put all his strength into his blow and punched him out.

Storm, meanwhile, was facing Cable. "You don't have to do this,"she told him.

"I've come too far to stop now."

"Yes. Sadly that's probably true." Storm focused her powers, creating a localised thunderclap around Cable's head. The noise brought him to his knees in an instant and she followed it up with a blow to the head that caused him to slump in front of her.

* * *

Beast was standing with Wolverine, Gambit and Storm as the members of X-Factor – Havok, Wolfsbane, Strong Guy and Multiple Man – led Cable and Bishop away in handcuffs. Bishop shot a wounded look at the X-Men. "I thought you wanted to make the world better for mutants."

"We do,"Storm replied. "But all you've done here is confirm people's worst fears of mutants."

"We'll secure them in the local detention facility,"Havok told Beast. "It's been converted for housing mutants."

"Good work, Alex,"Beast replied.

"Don't give us any trouble,"Strong Guy noted as he and Multiple Man led Cable along.

"'Cos I can multiply trouble,"Multiple Man added, splitting off a duplicate of himself to prove the point.

Wolfsbane shot Havok a look. "Ever get the feeling we're playing babysitter?"

"I can see your new job is really rewarding,"Wolverine remarked to Beast once X-Factor were out of earshot.

"It has its moments,"Beast agreed. "But what will you do now?"

"Now the real problem starts,"Storm observed. "Those two are just misguided. It's the Brotherhood we really have to worry about."

* * *

Bobby gave a sudden yelp of pain that caused everyone else in the lounge room to turn and look at him. They'd all been indulging in quiet study which made the noise even more obvious. He started rubbing his shoulder, looking embarrassed. "Sorry. Twinge."

Rogue, who had been sat at the other end of the sofa, got up and moved behind him. "Here, let me help." She began massaging his shoulders. "Gosh, you really are tense, aren't you?"

"You worried about something?"Jubilee asked.

"Kind of,"Bobby admitted. "It feels like we're on the verge of a new war and all our big guns have left us to fend for ourselves."

"And what, you're worried about being field leader again?"Kitty asked.

"Well, wouldn't you be?"Bobby returned.

"You've had more field experience than anyone else here,"Angel pointed out. "You're the obvious choice."

"That doesn't mean I'd be any good at it."

"We'll all back you up,"Rogue told him softly.

"Anyway, there's no need to get into a panic,"Kitty added. "What do you reckon the chances are of an attack occurring at the exact moment they're all gone?"

Bobby gave a weak smile. "Yeah, I suppose you're right."

It was at that point that a series of explosions went off all around the mansion, blowing up dirt at the windows and rattling the building. Colossus went to the nearest window and looked out. "I think you may have spoken too soon."

Bobby went to his side, followed by Rogue, Kitty, Warren, Jubilee and Siryn. They all looked out at the lawn. "I think we need to get the professor,"Bobby decided.

Standing across the lawn, not even attempting concealment, were Pyro, Juggernaut, Avalanche, Blob, War, Scalphunter and Vertigo: The Brotherhood.

Pyro looked at War and smiled. "Good work. I think we got their attention."


	7. Chapter 7

**Thanks for the review! I was worried this one would be rather short but it's ended up as the longest yet.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 7**

Professor X walked through the hallways, the picture of calm. He stopped outside the front room, glancing at those inside. "I understand we have some visitors."

Rogue nodded. "The Brotherhood."

The Professor's gaze swept over the group. "Bobby, Kitty, Warren, Peter, Lee, Therese, get suited up and ready to join me." The six youngsters ran off. "Rogue, I want you to begin moving the other students to safer areas. Just in case the mansion gets compromised."

Rogue nodded. "Okay."

"Meanwhile, I suppose I'd better go and see what our callers want. Perhaps they merely wish to invite us to join their religion."

* * *

Pyro smirked as he saw the solitary figure walking out of the mansion. "Well, well. The great Charles Xavier himself. I suppose you think you can put us all back in our boxes single-handed."

"While you were my student, John, I did my best to broaden your mind. Sadly, it appears that mind has long since become permanently closed."

Pyro shook his head. "You tried to poison my mind, Xavier. Fill it with your little dreams of mutants bowing down before inferiors. I know now that I'm better than them. And I'm better than you."

"Can you can the talking?"Juggernaut asked. "I only came here for the punch up."

"Well, that's something you're not going to get, I'm afraid." The Professor touched two fingers to the side of his head, focusing his mind, preparing to mentally freeze the Brotherhood members where they stood.

War clapped his hands and the ground around Xavier exploded, breaking his concentration. Before he could recover, Juggernaut and Blob came charging at him from opposite directions, crushing him in between their bodies. They crashed into him again and again. Even his metallic body couldn't stand up to the constant impacts from the two powerful opponents. His body sparked as it short-circuited, crumpling to the floor.

Xavier moved his head to look at Pyro. "My X-Men will defeat you, John. They are stronger than you. They are stronger because they know their weaknesses." Then he was still.

Bobby, Warren, Kitty, Colossus, Jubilee and Siryn came running out of the mansion and stopped as they took in the scene: Xavier lying beaten on the floor, the Brotherhood poisoned to attack.

Bobby glanced back and forth at the line of X-Men spread out either side of him. "We hold the line, okay?" He saw Kitty look at him nervously and gave her a reassuring smile, relieved when she smiled back. He tried to catch Therese's eye but she seemed to be avoiding his gaze.

Pyro smiled, as he balanced a ball of fire in his hand. "This is where the fun starts."

* * *

Rogue was ushering students across the upper landing towards the concealed opening that would lead them down a long ramp to an exit out in the countryside. One of the younger girls kept glancing anxiously in the direction of the lawn outside. "What are they going to do to us?"

"Let's not find out, Paige, okay?"Rogue suggested. "Just go with the others." She looked around at one of the older boys. "Doug, you and Dani go to the other end. If there's any sign that the Brotherhood are coming, take all the students that are with you and run. Don't worry about the rest of us."

The fair-haired boy nodded in understanding and began leading the other students down the tunnel.

Rogue looked at the other students gathered round and picked out Leech, who didn't seem to be making any effort to join the others. "Jimmy…"

"Are you staying here?"he asked her.

"Until everyone else is through."

"Then I'll stay as long as you do."

Rogue nodded in resignation. "Okay. Keep the others moving." She hefted the sword that Logan had given her. She'd retrieved it from her room during the chaos just in case she needed it. But as she kept an eye on the stairs, she fervently hoped that no-one would come up.

* * *

Iceman stood at the centre of the melee that had erupted on the lawn, trying to keep track of the various combatants while continuing to defend himself. Blob came running at him. "Wait till I get my hands on you,"he snarled.

"I'd rather you didn't,"Bobby retorted. He froze the ground in front of Blob. Blob's feet disappeared from under him and he landed on his back with a thud.

Nearby, Juggernaut was running at Colossus. Colossus was in his metal form, ready to meet the charge. It made no difference. Juggernaut charged straight into him, carrying him into the wall behind him and continuing to exert pressure until he felt he'd done enough. He released Colossus, who crumpled to the ground, still in his metal form.

Vertigo focused her power on Siryn, causing her to sink to her knees from the effects of the dizziness. Siryn looked up and activated her own powers as best she could, directing a sonic scream straight at her opponent. Vertigo clutched her ears in pain and collapsed.

Avalanche saw where Siryn was fallen and directed his powers at the base of a nearby tree. He disintegrated the lower part of it, causing the rest of it to fall. It landed on top of Siryn, pinning her to the ground. She didn't move.

Pyro was continuing to hurl fireballs at the group. "Forget this lot,"he snapped. "Avalanche, Scalphunter, see who's inside."

The two Brotherhood members disappeared into the mansion. Bobby looked round desperately to see who was free. "Kitty, stop them!"

Kitty gave a quick wave of acknowledgement before disappearing through the wall of the mansion.

* * *

Avalanche and Scalphunter came charging down the mansion corridors. Kitty suddenly appeared in front of them. "That's as far as you go,"she snapped.

Scalphunter levelled his weapon and hurled off a volley of bullets in her direction. She phased and let them pass through her. He looked at Avalanche. "Deal with her,"he told him before heading for the stairs. Kitty turned solid and tried to stop him but he brushed her aside.

Avalanche looked at her dismissively. "If your big power is not touching people, this shouldn't be too much of a problem."

"I've been taking lessons,"she retorted. She lashed out with a kick to his mid section that caused him to stagger back.

Avalanche directed his powers past Kitty at the bottom of a hat stand. The lower part disintegrated and started to topple. Kitty phased and it passed straight through her…and struck Avalanche on the head, knocking him out.

"The bigger they come, the dumber they are,"she sighed.

* * *

Rogue felt her heart leap as she saw Scalphunter coming up the stairs. "Go faster,"she snapped at the students before turning to Leech. "Okay, Jimmy, time to do your stuff."

Scalphunter reached the landing, giving a malicious smile as he saw the children gathered there. "I've always loved sitting targets,"he sneered. He levelled the gun, pulled the trigger…and nothing happened, as Leech's powers nullified the modifications his mutant powers had made to it. Scalphunter looked down at the weapon in confusion and Rogue hurled her sword, hitting him in the shoulder. Then, every student on the landing surged forward, rushing him. Despite his being a lot bigger and stronger than any of them, he had no chance against the weight of numbers. He was pushed over the banister and fell to the ground floor below them. He hit the ground and lay there, groaning in pain.

* * *

War clapped his hands and the ground around Jubilee exploded. "Explosions, huh?"she asked as she began generating fireworks in her fingers. "I can do that." She hurled the fireworks at him and they exploded around his head, leaving him disorientated.

Pyro was hurling his fireballs when he felt a collision in his back as Angel rammed him, knocking him off his feet. "I'll singe your wings!"he snarled, hurling fireballs upwards.

"You'll have to aim better than that,"Angel retorted as he zipped back and forth in the air, avoiding the balls.

Juggernaut was facing Iceman. "Better start running, ice boy,"he called. "'Cos once I start moving, nothing can stop me."

"I'd better make sure you don't start moving then,"Bobby retorted. He froze the air around Juggernaut, encasing him up to his neck in ice. As Juggernaut struggled to break free, Angel flew in and kicked him repeatedly in the head, leaving him dazed.

Pyro looked around. Avalanche and Scalphunter were staggering out of the mansion and the rest of the Brotherhood were staggering to their feet. "Come on!"he called. "We've done enough damage here. Now there's no-one can stop us when we get to Washington."

Looking around as the Brotherhood withdrew, at the burnt and wrecked lawn, the damage to the building and the fallen forms of Professor X, Colossus and Siryn, Bobby was forced to conclude that Pyro had a point.


	8. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER 8**

The mansion was beginning to look like a hospital or the aftermath of a humanitarian disaster. As Bobby walked through the corridors, he could see students treating each other for minor wounds, passing round first aid kits and bandages. He felt like he should be saying something encouraging to them, trying to raise morale. But actually, they all seemed in better shape than him. It was like they were treating the Brotherhood's attack as a fun adventure, closing their eyes to the more serious consequences.

It was a typical irony that the people who would have been most help in the crisis were the ones most in need of it. Professor X was usually the one to hold people together at times like this but his robot body lay in the mansion's sickbay. And at that moment, Bobby and Warren were carrying Colossus to join him, both aware that he could probably have picked both of them up without any effort while they were struggling with his prone form. He still hadn't regained consciousness after Juggernaut's battering of him, nor had he reverted from his metal form, which made carrying him all the harder.

Kitty and Jubilee were settling Siryn into the next bed along as they entered. "How is she?"Bobby asked.

Kitty looked less than confident. "Well, I've hooked her up to the machines to pump her full of sedatives. I just hope they know the dosage. Her breathing sounds funny, she might have internal injuries or something."

"Shouldn't we get them to a hospital?"Warren asked as they settled Colossus.

Bobby shook his head. "A hospital wouldn't know what to do with mutants. It's better we bring help here. Hopefully Rogue's handling that now. Do you know how to set the monitors up?"

Warren nodded. "I'll get to it."

Jubilee had taken a seat next to Siryn's bed and was holding her hand. Bobby looked at her awkwardly. "Jubes?"

"I'm staying with Therese,"she said simply. Her tone and the look she gave him somehow made it sound like an accusation.

Bobby looked away. "I'd better…go see how things are,"he announced, wanting to get away from them, from the realisation that he'd led them into a disaster that might still leave their friends dead.

"Bobby."

For a moment, Bobby thought he'd imagined the voice until he saw the faces of the others and realised they'd heard it too. The voice of Charles Xavier. He went over to where the professor's body lay, expecting to see it moving again, but the metal face remained frozen in position, no sign of life at all. "Professor?"he asked cautiously.

"Yes." The body didn't move yet somehow Bobby knew the voice was coming from it. He remembered the X-Men's visit to Muir Island during the battle with Apocalypse, the discovery that Professor X's mind had survived his body's destruction by Phoenix, nestled in a body that looked as dead as this one yet with the mind inside it still very much alive. "This body is damaged. It's taken me a long time to recover enough to speak with you."

Bobby hung his head. "I'm sorry, Professor."

"Sorry? Why?"

"I let Peter and Therese get hurt."

"You protected the students. As did they. I'm proud of you. All of you. You have shown yourself to be true X-Men. Don't let it end this way. Tell Ororo and Logan. John must be stopped. I trust you, Bobby."

Bobby's face hardened, as he was filled with sudden determination. He turned to the others. "Look after them. I'll be back."

* * *

Bobby headed for the office, where Rogue was sat in front of the desk, replacing the telephone receiver. "I've called Doctor MacTaggert,"she reported. "She's flying down here straightaway."

"That's good." Bobby gave her an awkward pat on the shoulder. "Are _you_ all right?"

"Me? Just fought off an ex-Marauder with help from a group of kids. All in a day's work for an X-Man. How are the others?"

"I don't know. Sooner Moira gets here the better." Bobby hesitated over the communicator panel.

"What's up?"Rogue asked.

"Now comes the hard bit. Telling Storm and Logan what's gone on."

Rogue winced. "Ouch." She took his hand. "Let's do it together."

* * *

Logan gently laid kisses on Storm's neck, as she made a not-entirely-committed attempt to extricate herself from his lap. "Logan, Remy could come in at any minute!"

"Adds to the fun,"he mumbled in between kisses.

There was a bleep from the X-Jet's communications panel in front of them. Storm reached forward and pressed one of the buttons. "Blackbird."

"Storm, this is Bobby,"came the answer. "The mansion's been attacked."

Storm slid off Logan's lap into the seat next to his, both of their demeanours suddenly becoming serious. "Is everyone all right?"Storm asked.

"No. Colossus and Siryn were injured and…the professor's out of action. He's alive but…his body doesn't work anymore."

"What about the rest of you?"Logan asked anxiously.

"Just cuts and bruises,"Rogue answered. Logan visibly relaxed at the sound of her voice.

"Doctor MacTaggert's on her way,"Bobby added.

"Well, sit tight,"Storm told them. "We'll be with you within the hour."

"No, it's not us you have to worry about,"Rogue insisted. "It's the Brotherhood. John said they're going to Washington."

"Where in Washington?"Storm asked.

"I don't know. But…if the attack on the General Assembly was a test…"

"The Senate?"Logan finished for her.

"If mutants attack there, there'll be hell to pay,"Storm concluded.

"So you've got to stop them,"Bobby continued. "You and X-Factor."

Storm exchanged a look with Logan. "Bobby, X-Factor aren't here anymore. There was an incident in Baltimore, they've gone to check it out. It's just the three of us."

"We'll sort it." Wolverine cut the channel and spoke into a different frequency. "Cajun, you there?"

"Something I can do for you?"came Gambit's response.

"Got a new problem to sort out. Come and help, will you?"

"I'll be there as soon as I can. I guess this casino got lucky."

Storm waited until the channel was closed before glaring at Logan. "The three of us against the Brotherhood? Are you serious?"

"Sounds like my kind of odds. Unless you've got any other ideas?"

Storm hesitated. "Maybe."

* * *

The guards led Storm and Logan down the corridor towards the cell. They looked through the bars and saw Cable and Bishop sat there, glaring at each other irritably. They turned to face the newcomers. "You said you wanted to stop the Brotherhood,"Storm reminded them.

There was a confused silence. "Yes,"Bishop confirmed at last.

"Well, here's your chance. We're going to Washington to put a stop to them. We want you to come with us."

Bishop looked uncertain. "What's the catch?"

"That you do this properly. The way we do things. You don't put innocent lives at risk, you don't use greater force than you have to and you follow our orders to the letter. Do you have a problem with that?"

"Where do we sign up?"Cable asked.

Bishop hesitated a moment longer before nodding. "I'm with you."

Storm nodded to the guard who opened the cell. Then she led the pair back towards the X-Jet.

Wolverine brought up the rear. "I'm watching you,"he warned them.


	9. Chapter 9

**Thanks for the reviews! I never intended to kill off Professor X but I wanted him out of the way for a while to give the other characters a chance to take control. Hope everyone likes this one!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 9**

Bobby, Rogue, Kitty and Warren waited on the mansion lawn as the jet came into land. Moments later, its two occupants emerged: Moira MacTaggert and her fiancè Sean Cassidy, formerly the X-Man Banshee.

"Doctor MacTaggert,"Bobby greeted her. "Thanks for coming."

Before Moira could answer, Banshee fixed Bobby with a piercing gaze. "What have you done to my daughter?"

Bobby floundered and Kitty came to his rescue. "Therese was just trying to do what was right, Mr. Cassidy. We all were."

Banshee shook his head. "X-Men. Think you can change the world all by yourselves. I never wanted Therese to be part of this, I just wanted her to learn how to use her powers safely."

"And she can,"Kitty insisted.

"She's lying in that mansion half crushed. You call that safe?"

"Mr. Cassidy,"Bobby snapped. "I'm sorry that Therese got hurt. I blame myself for what happened to her and Peter just as much as you do. But you were an X-Man once and I think you still believe in the same things we do. Therese was just trying to do what was right, to protect her friends, same as we all were."

"Look, we don't have time to discuss this now,"Moira interjected. "I need to see my patients." She moved towards the mansion.

"Actually,"Bobby interceded,"I was going to ask you if you minded looking after the mansion. I don't think the Brotherhood will come back but someone has to keep an eye on the students."

"Well, of course, but where will you be?"

Bobby took a deep breath. "I'm going to Washington. It's where Pyro's going. And Logan and the others can't stop him on their own."

"Are you crazy?"Banshee asked. "You've only just survived one battle and you want to go and join another one?"

"Guess so." Bobby looked at his friends. "Kitty, Warren, you up for it?"

"We'll be there,"Warren confirmed.

"Count us in,"Kitty agreed.

"Okay. Show Moira and Mr. Cassidy to the patients, then get suited up and join us in the hangar."

Bobby watched until they had all entered the mansion, leaving him and Rogue alone on the lawn, before he turned to face her. "I wish I could go with you,"she said.

He gently stroked her bare arm. "I do too,"he admitted. "I like having you around. But…you'll probably be better off helping Moira here."

"Can you do me a favour? Take Leech with you?"

Bobby looked at her in surprise. "He's just a kid."

"Yeah, well, so were we once."

Bobby nodded. "I'll ask him." He kissed her gently on the lips, holding onto her hand for as long as possible before he headed inside.

* * *

Bobby headed up to the infirmary. He noticed Banshee had joined Jubilee in sitting by Siryn but decided to delay talking to either of them. Instead he turned his attention to Moira. "How are they?"

"Therese has several broken ribs and one of them's punctured her lung. That's why she's having breathing problems. It should be easy enough to release the pressure, then she'll be okay." She nodded towards Colossus. "Peter is a bit more of a problem. His metal form was beaten out of shape. I'm going to have to try and remould it and hope he's okay when he reverts back."

Bobby nodded in understanding before moving over to where Jubilee was sitting. "Jubes?" She looked up at him. "We're going to Washington, to try and stop the Brotherhood. I'd like you to come with us but…if you want to stay here, I understand. It's up to you."

Jubilee lowered her gaze. She was silent for a few moments, long enough for him to wonder if he should just take the silence as a refusal and leave. But then she looked at Banshee. "Do you think Therese would mind if I went?"

Banshee glanced at Bobby, who did his best to look as inoffensive as possible. Then he looked back at Jubilee. "I think she'd want you to do what you think is right."

Jubilee smiled at him. "Can you keep an eye on her while I'm gone?" Banshee nodded and Jubilee looked at Bobby. "I'm in."

* * *

Bobby and Jubilee donned their uniforms and headed down the corridor to the hangar. Waiting outside the door were Kitty, Warren and Leech.

Bobby nodded to his three friends. "We'll join you in a minute." Taking the hint, the trio headed towards the X-Jet. Bobby turned to Leech. "Are you sure you want to come?"

"Are you saying you don't think I'm up to it?"

"No…" Bobby thought for a moment, since that actually was what he was saying. "It's just I've already got two friends in the infirmary and I don't want to add you to them."

"I was the only one still standing after fighting the Marauders, aside from Jubilee. Surely that counts for something?"

Bobby sighed. "I'm not going to stop you, am I?"

"Nope."

"Okay, come on."

* * *

Pyro led the Brotherhood stealthily through the trees surrounding the Capitol building. He noticed the large group of soldiers patrolling outside the building. "They seem to have upped security. Wonder if they were expecting us?"

"The X-Men could have worked it out,"Scalphunter suggested. "Warned them."

"Sounds like them,"Juggernaut agreed.

"Then it's time to show them just how useless their preparations are. War."

War clapped his hands and the area around the soldiers exploded. Before they could recover, Pyro sent a wall of flame sweeping over them. Blob, Avalanche and Juggernaut ran through the carnage, knocking aside any soldier who tried to stop them. Avalanche hit the doors with a blast, desintegrating them.

The Brotherhood ran through the corridors. Vertigo hit a group of soldiers with a nausea burst, then Scalphunter gunned them down before they recovered.

"Blob, Juggernaut, War, Scalphunter, stay here and stop anyone coming after us,"Pyro snapped. "Vertigo, Avalanche…it's time we paid a visit to our elected representatives."

* * *

The X-Men could see the devastation caused by the attack as they flew over the Capitol. "Get us down fast,"Storm instructed.

Wolverine shot her a look. "You want to drive?"

"It looks as though we may be too late,"Gambit commented.

"Not yet,"Storm replied.

Wolverine shot a look back at Cable and Bishop, sitting silently in the rear seats. Cable had somehow acquired a big gun from somewhere and was resting it on his lap. Neither of them seemed to want to look at the other. "You want to talk to them?"he asked Storm quietly.

Storm turned round in her seat to address the pair. "You're clear on your instructions?"

"I know what the rules are,"Cable replied succinctly.

Bishop inclined his head at her. "I will follow you in all things."

Wolverine and Gambit exchanged a look. "I've got a bad feeling about this,"Wolverine sighed.


	10. Chapter 10

**Thanks for the review!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 10**

Moira checked on the prone forms of Siryn and Colossus. She was certain both of them would recover but not so certain that she didn't make regular examinations. She moved over and looked down at Professor X's prone form. "What am I going to do with you, Charles?"

She heard his voice in her mind. "I appreciate all that you've done, Moira."

"What, making you comfortable? That's not really an issue anymore, is it? At least when you found a human body to house you, I could keep it alive. But I didn't have anything to do with making this body, that was Forge's work. With him dead, I'm not sure there's anyone left alive who could repair it."

"Henry McCoy, perhaps?"

Moira nodded. "I'll get on to him straightaway."

"You two still having private conversations?"asked a voice from the doorway.

Moira turned round and saw that Banshee had entered. She quickly noticed that he was wearing an X-Men uniform. "You going somewhere?"

Banshee sighed. "I don't want to leave Therese. But there's a bunch of kids no older than her risking their lives for your man there's dream. I can't really just sit by and not do anything to help them."

"We've run out of X-Jets."

"I think the wail of the banshee will be enough to get me there." He stepped forward and kissed her softly. "If I don't come back…"

"Don't say it,"she interrupted.

Banshee glanced over at Siryn. "Think of something to tell her." He noticed another figure standing in the doorway. "Hey, Rogue."

Rogue gave a smile that Moira felt looked somewhat awkward. "Hi, Mr. Cassidy."

Moira waited until Sean had left before looking back at Rogue. "Is something wrong?"

Rogue swallowed hard. "I know you're busy and everything but…I think I've just gone into labour."

* * *

Storm led Wolverine, Gambit, Cable and Bishop at full pelt down the corridor. Suddenly, they reached the spot where Juggernaut, Blob, War and Scalphunter were waiting. They came to a dead halt, the two groups staring at each other. Juggernaut took a step forward. "Well, look who it is. My old playmates."

"Just when you think the day can't get any worse,"Wolverine muttered.

Bishop looked at Storm. "Are we allowed to fight them?"

"Yes,"Storm answered. "But pick your targets carefully and no civillian casualties."

"I've got a target,"Wolverine retorted and leapt at Juggernaut. Juggernaut caught him in mid-air and threw him, causing him to slam backwards into a wall with a sickening thud.

"That's an example of how not to do things,"Storm told the others before hurling lightning bolts at Juggernaut.

Juggernaut gave her an amused glare. "Oh look. The witch wants to play as well."

Blob leapt forward and landed on top of Bishop, sitting astride him. "Don't even think about trying to move me,"he noted.

"I'm not going to move you,"Bishop replied. "You're right where I want you."

Blob looked puzzled. Bishop unleashed a blast of energy at low intensity. There was a flash and when it was cleared Blob looked blackened and dazed.

Cable raised his weapon and opened fire at Scalphunter, who dodged the burst. Scalphunter transformed his own weapon into a laser rifle and began firing beams at Cable. The two of them began dodging around the other combatants. "Shame you can't turn your gun into a laser,"Scalphunter remarked.

"I don't need to,"Cable replied simply. He fired a laser beam from his glowing eye that Scalphunter was forced to deflect with his weapon.

Gambit charged up a playing card and hurled it at War. It hit the ground next to him and exploded. "Mine are bigger,"War replied. He clapped his hands and the ground around Gambit was ripped with explosions.

* * *

As the battle continued, another X-Jet was coming into land outside. Bobby, Kitty, Angel, Jubilee and Leech disembarked. They saw a group of soldiers outside the Capitol building. The soldiers spotted the new arrivals as well and began running towards them. "Do they want us to surrender?"Jubilee asked.

"I think they're on our side,"Angel replied.

The soldiers stopped a few paces away. The sergeant eyed over the newcomers. "You're X-Men?"

The quintet nodded. "Are our friends here?"Kitty asked.

"They went in the front entrance,"the sergeant confirmed. "But they've run into a group of attackers who were forming a rearguard, they can't get through. Another group's on their way to the senate."

"Then we'll have to get there before them,"Bobby decided.

"Every corridor from the entrance is blocked. The only way you'd be able to get there is if you could walk through walls."

Bobby looked at Kitty, who smiled at him. He looked back at the sergeant. "Funny you should say that."

* * *

Pyro strode into the senate chamber, Avalanche and Vertigo just behind him. One of the senators stood up. "This is an outrage!"

Pyro nodded to Avalanche who desintegrated the podium under the man's feet, causing him to fall heavily on his behind. "No-one talk,"Pyro instructed.

* * *

Kitty held onto Bobby and Warren as the three of them walked through the wall at the rear of the building. Satisfied that they were through safely, Kitty walked back through the wall, reappearing a few seconds later with Jubilee and Leech.

"So where do we go now?"Leech asked.

Bobby heard a familiar voice echoing down the corridor. "Follow the shouting."

* * *

Pyro stood in the middle of the senate floor. "I am here to tell you that your services are no longer required. Now, I'm sure you're asking yourself whether I have the authority to do that. The answer is I have. Because you see, if I was one of the ordinary citizens of this country, I'd have to vote to remove you from office. But because I'm way beyond them and you, I just have to do this."

Pyro generated a vast wave of fire around him, gathering strength all the time. Senators shrank back in alarm. Pyro sent the flames bursting out towards them…and then the flames froze into ice. They clattered to the floor, breaking with a large smash.

Pyro turned round to find Iceman, Kitty, Angel, Leech and Jubilee had entered.

"Hello, John,"Bobby greeted him. "I think we need to talk."


	11. Chapter 11

**CHAPTER 11**

Pyro glared hard at his former friend. They were both mutants, both the same age, but that was all they had in common. They had become the pupils of two other former friends, two other mutants, Charles Xavier and Magneto, and come to embody the respective values of their mentors, the opposing goals of integration and domination.

Slowly, Pyro's cockiness returned. "The X-Men. A perfect lesson on denying nature. Mutants on the outside, weaklings on the inside. You're so scared of what you are you pretend you're something else."

"And what about you?"Bobby retorted. "We might be chasing a dream but what are you chasing? You want the world to bow down to you? Fear you, respect you? There's nothing to respect. Just a child throwing a tantrum. And you really think you're a god?"

Pyro snarled and hurled a fireball at Bobby. Bobby froze it in midair and responded by hurling a ball of ice. Around them, the other members of the X-Men and Brotherhood charged into battle as well.

* * *

Moira's other patients lay forgotten. All her attention was now focused on Rogue, who was breathing heavily from the labour pains. The Native American girl, Dani, the oldest female student yet to graduate to the X-Men, had been pressed into service as a birthing partner and was holding tightly onto Rogue's hand, her other hand caressing the back of Rogue's head soothingly.

"Not long now, Rogue,"Moira told her.

"Where's Bobby?"Rogue moaned. "He was supposed to be here."

"I know, love. But haven't you learned by now that things don't always go the way they're supposed to?"

"This shouldn't have happened now. What am I going to tell the baby?"

"That their father was off doing something important. Important to all of us. He'll be all right."

* * *

Iceman dived for cover as a burst of flame dashed over his head, hitting a stand and causing it to catch alight. The chamber was empty now apart from the combatants, with security guards having taken advantage of the battle to lead the senators away.

Pyro laughed. "Still hiding, Bobby? Carry on. I'll get you soon enough."

Avalanche was facing Kitty and Angel. "Watch your footing, kids,"he sneered. He desintegrated the floor, sending an avalanche towards them.

Angel grabbed hold of Kitty and took off, hovering a few feet off the floor and letting the avalanche pass underneath them. "Who needs feet?"

Vertigo was directing her powers at Jubilee, forcing the girl to her knees with waves of nausea. "What's the matter, feeling a bit sick?"she sneered.

Then Leech entered the fray, using his powers to cancel Vertigo's. Jubilee looked up, generated the biggest load of fireworks she'd ever managed and hurled them at her opponent. Vertigo was thrown backwards by the force…right onto a ceremonial spear, impaling herself through the chest. She gazed at the spear point sticking out of her body for a moment, as if wondering how it got here, then died.

The death seemed to set off something in Avalanche, causing his nerve to break. He ran for the door the Brotherhood had entered by, fleeing the room. "I'll get him,"Angel announced, flying after him.

Pyro suddenly seemed to notice he was standing alone against four X-Men. He snatched up a chunk of wood broken from one of the stands and waved it at the four as they advanced on him in a line. "Stay back,"he snapped. Then he ran for a flight of stairs, disappearing up them.

"Wait here,"Bobby told the others, before running after him.

Kitty hesitated for a moment, unsure. "Wait here,"she told Jubilee and Leech before disappearing after the pair.

* * *

Further down the corridor, battle still raged. Wolverine was now battling War, all finesse gone as the two of them tore into each other. No less brutal was the fight between Juggernaut and Cable going on next to them, in what seemed to be an attempt to inflict as much pain and damage as possible.

Storm and Bishop stood either side of Blob, taking it in turns to strike him, while he remained unmoving. "Gotta try harder than that, kids,"he snapped.

"Are you sure I can't fry him?"Bishop asked.

"If anyone gets to do that, it'll be me,"Storm replied.

Gambit was squaring up to Scalphunter. "I never thanked you for trying to kill me. And my girlfriend."

"You were always too quick to form attachments, LeBeau,"Scalphunter retorted. He reshaped his gun into a laser rifle, a large power pack hanging from the bottom.

Gambit charged up his card and hurled it, hitting his target dead on: the weapon's power pack. It took a moment for Scalphunter to realise the significance before both card and weapon exploded in his face, killing him instantly.

"Down!"shouted a voice suddenly.

Only Wolverine, Storm and Gambit recognised the voice and understood what it meant. They clamped their hands over their ears. Seconds later, a high-pitched wail filled the corridor as Banshee flew above them. Everyone else present felt their eardrums swell at the noise and collapsed in pain.

Wolverine and Storm went to check on Cable and Bishop. Wolverine glared at Banshee. "You suddenly decide to gatecrash?"

"I think my invite must have been lost."

At that moment, Avalanche came pounding down the corridor. "We're finished!"he shouted. "We've got to get out of here!"

The exhortation was enough to get Juggernaut, Blob and War back on their feet. Avalanche blasted a hole in the wall, revealing the lawn outside. "That way!"

As the group raced out, War gave a whistle. The robotic mount that Apocalypse had provided him with came swooping down out of the sky. War leapt on it. "You can find your own way,"he told the others before heading skywards again.

Angel came flying along the corridor. His eyes narrowed as he saw War, the only other surviving member of Apocalypse's Horsemen. Ignoring his first target, he took off into the air after him, flying around War's stead.

War swung a fist in his direction. "Buzz off, boy!"

Angel looped round in front of his opponent and then flew at him head on. War waited for him to move out of the way.

He didn't. Instead he collided with it head on. War was knocked off it and plummetted downwards. Angel was knocked unconscious and followed him. Seeing what was happening, Storm took off in the direction of the aerial duel, grabbing Angel out of the air and cushioning his momentum.

No-one caught War.

* * *

Pyro stood on the edge of the roof. Bobby arrived a few steps behind him and stood, watching him. "Nowhere else to run, John,"he commented.

Pyro turned to face him. "Who's running?"he retorted. He hurled the chunk of wood he was still carrying. It struck Bobby on the head and he sank to his knees, dazed.

Kitty arrived and took in the scene at a glance: Bobby on the ground, unable to defend himself, Pyro slowly generating a burst of fire. "Bobby, look out!"she shouted, diving forward and throwing herself onto her friend. She phased them both as Pyro unleashed the wave of flame, letting it pass harmlessly over and about them.

As the flames died, Bobby looked up and aimed his own powers, freezing the air around Pyro, leaving him encased in an ice outline. He toppled backwards, right over the edge of the roof.

The ice melted on the way down, giving Pyro a few moments to realise what was happening before he hit the ground.

* * *

Moira gently wrapped the baby in a cloth before settling her in her mother's arms. "Am I holding her right?"Rogue asked.

Moira smiled gently at her. "You're doing fine, Rogue."

Dani ran to the door. Almost the entire student body seemed to be gathered on the landing. "It's a girl," she told them with a grin.

A cheer went up.


	12. Chapter 12

**My thanks once again for the review!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 12**

X-Factor had turned up at the Capitol but there were no mutant criminals for them to take into custody this time. Instead they had been required to remove the bodies of Pyro, War, Scalphunter and Vertigo. A search had been conducted for the Brotherhood members who had fled the scene but no trace of them had been found.

Kitty was crouched down next to Angel, bathing a lump on the top of his head from his collision with War. "Don't do that again,"she warned him sternly.

"It hurts too much,"he agreed.

"You're lucky it hurt someone else more." Kitty smiled and gave him a light kiss.

Gambit and Jubilee had retired to a quiet corner as soon as they'd been reunited. They leant against a wall, staring into space. "How are you feeling?"Gambit asked.

Jubilee sighed. "I killed someone."

Gambit shrugged. "Me too."

"So what do we do? Do we learn to live with it?"

"Yes. Eventually. You have to." Tentatively, he put an arm around her shoulder. She let him pull her into a hug, holding her silently.

Wolverine, Storm and Banshee stood watching as Havok supervised the removal of the bodies. Wolfsbane was doing some final checks on Cable and Bishop to make sure there were no after-effects from Banshee's scream. "Are you sure you can both hear me fine?"she asked.

"Loud and clear,"Bishop confirmed.

"So if you've quite finished patronising us?"Cable asked.

Wolfsbane sighed and looked at Havok. "They're clear, sir."

"So how come the furball left you to handle this job?"Wolverine asked.

"Well, he's a bit busy at your mansion,"Havok answered.

"What?"Storm asked. "Why?"

Havok froze, as did Strong Guy and Multiple Man who had been loading up bodies into the back of an ambulance behind him. Wolverine and Storm looked from them to Banshee, who did his best to avoid their gaze. Then they looked at Iceman, who was chatting with Leech nearby. "Bobby,"Storm snapped. "What's Beast doing at the mansion?"

"They called him in to fix the professor,"Bobby explained. "Guess I should have told you that."

"How badly damaged was he?"Wolverine asked.

Bobby shrugged. "Don't know. Guess I should call in and check."

Banshee coughed slightly. "Ah, actually I spoke to Moira soon as the battle was done. Turns out they had a bit of a distraction after we left. Something you should know about, Bobby."

Bobby looked concerned. "What? Why?"

Strong Guy leaned down to whisper to Multiple Man. "Isn't his lady the one who..?"

"Yeah."

Leech patted Bobby on the shoulder. "I think I should be the first to say congratulations."

Bobby still looked confused. "For what?"

Wolverine sighed. "I pity that poor kid."

* * *

Juggernaut, Blob and Avalanche paused in a forest clearing. "I don't think they're following us,"Blob noted, slightly out of breath.

"Anyone see what happened to Pyro?"Juggernaut asked.

"I saw him fall off the roof while we were running,"Avalanche noted.

"Right. Well, I guess that puts me in charge then."

Blob and Avalanche didn't seem entirely convinced by the assertion. "Why's that?"Avalanche asked.

"I've been here the longest. But if you want to argue, I'll see if I can hit that tree with you."

"Okay,"Blob conceeded,"suppose we do accept you as leader for a bit..."

"That's big of you. And you are pretty big."

Blob did his best to keep his temper. "Then what do we do?"

"I haven't decided yet."

Avalanche seemed equally cautious. "You do have some sort of a plan?"

"Well, for a start we can forget all of this taking over the world rubbish." Juggernaut looked from one to the other, gauging their reaction. "We're the superior beings, right? So I say we take what we want, when we want it. Simple as that. Rest of the time, hey, live and let live. If a bunch of stuffy old guys want to sit in a dusty old room and work out how much money they're going to add onto petrol costs…"

"Petrol?"Blob asked, not recognising the word.

"A load of gas. Well, they can do that. I don't want to. Don't want to pay for it either. You with me so far?"

Blob and Avalanche looked at each other and nodded. "Doesn't sound too bad,"Avalanche conceeded.

Juggernaut grinned. "From now on around here, there's going to be a lot less politics and a lot more fun."

* * *

Bobby was leaping out of the X-Jet as soon as it touched down in the hangar, racing through the corridors and up the stairs to the medical bay. Many of the students he passed seemed to want to offer their congratulations and he did his best to give his thanks without slowing down. When he reached the door, he skidded to a halt and stopped. There, he saw Rogue, nursing a child. She looked round at him and smiled.

Bobby slowly made his way into the room. He came up next to her, peering down at the tiny face screwing up her eyes at her first experience of sunlight. "Is that really..?"

Rogue smiled. "Ours."

Bobby kissed Rogue lightly on the lips. "I love you." Their smiles were equally blissful. He looked down at their daughter and gently stroked her face. "You too."

"What are we going to call her?"Rogue asked.

"I don't know. I guess she'll end up calling herself Icegirl or Rascal when she gets older anyway."

"Don't book her in for her first Danger Room session yet!"Rogue protested.

"Maybe we should give her a name that means something. Like, I don't know, Hope."

Rogue shot him a look. "I think that might be pinning a bit too much on her."

"Fair enough. Well, what about Harmony then?"

Rogue considered it. "Harmony. Yeah, I think that works."


	13. Chapter 13

**My thanks for all the reviews, this is the last chapter, hope you enjoy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 13**

Professor X slowly became aware of the return of feeling. Except feeling was not truly the right word. It was more a deep psychic connection with his artificial body. As the connection took hold, he began to move again, regarding the odd combination of figures surrounding him: Wolverine, Storm, Moira, Banshee, Beast and Havok. "Well, this is quite a welcome back to the land of the living,"he commented.

Storm hugged him, even though he couldn't feel it. "It's good to have you back, Professor,"she said quietly.

"Well, I'm not sure about that, I don't seem to have been missed that much. It seems once more I must congratulate you. And young Bobby. He certainly provided himself as a field leader. Even if he is notably absent from my homecoming."

"Him and Rogue have the bub to look after,"Wolverine noted.

"Ah yes, of course. Well, I'm not used to having students quite that young in my school but that one is most welcome. And I also owe my thanks to you, Henry, for the sterling work you did in restoring me."

Beast shrugged modestly. "A simple case of rewiring. It scarcely requires much competence."

"And my thanks to you, Moira, for making sure we got through these troubles. How are your patients?"

"See for yourself,"Moira suggested, nodding towards a nearby bed.

Colossus and Siryn were sitting on the bed, holding hands. Colossus had reverted to his human form and both of them were recovered from their injuries. They stood up when they saw they had Professor X's attention. "Professor,"Colossus acknowledged.

Xavier waved them down. "There's no need to be so formal."

"I'm afraid there is. You see, Therese and I have made a decision."

"We're going to leave the X-Men,"Siryn explained.

Banshee gave a shrug. "I can't say I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's not as simple as that, Dad. If you don't mind, Doctor McCoy…we'd like to join X-Factor."

Beast looked at Havok before turning back to the pair. "May I ask why?"

"I'm just sick of doing this without the safety net."

"We don't just do clean up operations,"Havok pointed out. "Being with us will still be dangerous."

"We know,"Colossus agreed. "But you have back up, rules. Blindly rushing in isn't for us anymore."

"Well, we'd be delighted to have you,"Beast acknowledged. "If it's all right with the professor."

"If there's one thing this school stands for,"Xavier replied,"it's freedom of choice. If this is the future you see for yourselves, no-one here will stand in your way."

* * *

Wolverine and Storm stood at a window and watched as the X-Factor jet took off in one direction, heading back to their headquarters in Washington, while Moira and Banshee's plane headed off towards Muir Island in another. "Well, that's another two gone,"Wolverine noted.

"The professor's right,"Storm told him. "It's not a competition. Anyway, since when did you get so concerned with keeping this place's attendance levels high."

"Since I found you here."

Storm took his hands and lightly kissed him on the lips. "I guess we've all got to thank this place for a lot." She nodded past him and he turned to see Bobby leading a group in X-Men uniforms towards the lower levels: Kitty, Warren…and Cable and Bishop. "One door opens and another one closes."

"We've really got our work cut out."

* * *

Bobby paused outside the Danger Room, Kitty and Warren flanking him, and looked at Cable and Bishop, trying to bring authority to his words. Giving orders to his old classmates had been bad enough, acting as a trainer for two new recruits who both appeared far older than him was taking him way out of his comfort zone. At least they'd managed to persuade Rogue to wait a few weeks before resuming training, although the pain she'd felt when she'd tried to get out of bed would probably have stopped her as well.

He tried to remember the words he'd once heard Beast say to new recruits. "Once you go through this door, you're X-Men,"he explained. "And that's a responsibility. We use our powers to help people. Not people that deserve it, people that need it. Whoever they are. Are you willing to do that?"

"We are,"Cable confirmed.

"This is what we want,"Bishop echoed.

Bobby nodded. "Let's go then." He turned and led them inside.

"You're sweating,"Kitty pointed out quietly.

"Not now, Kitty."

"This could be an interesting session,"Warren observed.

* * *

Professor X, Wolverine and Storm had headed to the room that Rogue and Bobby shared. Rogue was sat on top of the covers, nursing Harmony. Xavier had done his best to touch the child as gently as possible and, after a few nervous moments, she seemed to have accepted the feel of his metal hand.

"I feel like I should be making some inspirational speeches about now,"he noted. "But perhaps she's all the inspiration we need."

"She's certainly going to have a big family looking out for her,"Rogue agreed.

"That's not really what I imagined this school as when I set it up. But somehow it's what it's become. The world continues to surprise us."

"You're going to like living here, Harmony,"Storm told the child. "If anyone upsets you, Uncle Logan here will slice them."

"And Auntie Ororo here will fry them,"Wolverine added.

Rogue gave them a mock glare. "You're planning to traumatise her even before she can talk?"

Gambit and Jubilee appeared in the doorway. "You know there's a lot of people out here wanting to welcome our new resident,"Gambit noted.

"And they're not getting a lot of lessons done,"Jubilee added.

Xavier smiled. "Well, in the circumstances I think we can let them in."

Students began filing into the room, eager to share in the happy atmosphere. What Rogue had said was true. To all of them, the mansion no longer felt like a school but a family.


End file.
